1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an impact absorption plate for absorbing impact energy so as to protect a passenger or a driver in the event of a vehicle crash, and to a method of manufacturing the impact absorption plate.
2. Description of Related Art
As well known to those skilled in the art, impact absorbers, having various materials and structures, have been used to absorb impact energy. These impact absorbers are made of various materials, including fabric, foam, and plastics.
Particularly, in order to protect a passenger or a driver of a vehicle in the event of a vehicle crash, impact absorbers having various structures have been proposed and used in vehicles. Earlier patent disclosures dealing with the impact absorbers are found in U.S. Pat. No. 6,199,942 (Mar. 13, 2001), U.S. Pat. No. 6,247,745 (Jun. 19, 2001), U.S. Pat. No. 6,682,128 (Jan. 27, 2004), etc.
For example, a conventional impact absorber is constructed so that a plurality of protrusions is provided on a seat, and walls of the protrusions are partially compressed when energy is absorbed, thus absorbing impact.
The conventional impact absorber is manufactured to have a different shape according to impact characteristics or impact space, and is manufactured so that the seat and the protrusions are integrated into a single structure through a mold. Thus, when it is required to change the construction of the impact absorber so as to improve the performance thereof, the mold must be modified, or a new mold must be manufactured. Therefore, the conventional impact absorber is problematic in that an excessively high investment is required, and the number of assembly processes is increased, so that work efficiency is low.
The information disclosed in this Background of the Invention section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.